Graphic Novel TIEA
In American Born Chinese, Gene Luen Yang proves the importance of commonness in forming a relationship and how it can result in positive changes of a character’s identity and self-worth. The character Jin became more talkative and started to develop crushes after he decided to be friends with the new student Asian boy Wei-Cheng. “I pondered these things by myself for a full month before telling Wei-Chien. Ha Ha, Jin loves girl.” (89) Before Jin started developing any relationships in the story, he was always being away and alone outside the social circle in school. He had no one to tell his loneliness and daily feelings about being a Chinese American boy in the country of all unfamiliar things. He rejected Wei-Chien when he first came to talk to him because he was also an Asian. Until he saw the similar robot that he used to play when he was little. As a result, the robot and similar origin of Asian built links between the two characters. After he became friends with Wei-Chien. He noticed a girl from his class Amelia and started to have connections with other classmates.
Graphic Novel Illustrator TIEA
This image reveals the desire of the character who wants to fit in with the group and the consequences of the change in one’s identity impact by the others’ opinions. The character Jin got told by the all-American boy who’s in the center of the social circle to keep a distance from Amelia because he is a Chinese American and he had a fight with Wei-Chien due to his pride on admitting his identity who’s similar to Wei-Chien. Jin always tries his best to be like an all-American boy, finally, he dreamed of the herbalist’s wife and actually became an American boy named Danny. (194) The words of other people wounded his pride of being himself as a Chinese American. This image links the character relationship between Jin and Danny. More importantly, it presents the main concept of the story of how the two very different characters who all have the same goal of fitting in with the society. Jin lost his true identity as he lost his confidence and self-worth, became a person that lived in other people’s expectations.
Discussion documents:
– Discussion 1
– Discussion 2
– Discussion 3